Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
PROBLEM-SOLVING EXERCISES
1.
Identify three companies that make the highest quality
products or services for an industry of your choice. Find the
number of employees, total sales, total profits, and earnings
growth rate for these three firms. Using a database program,
enter this information for the last year. Use the database to
generate a report of the three companies with the highest
earnings growth rate. Use your word processor to create a
document that describes these firms. What other measures
would you use to determine which is the best company in
terms of future profit potential? Does high quality always
mean high profits?
a.
Using a spreadsheet program, calculate the return
on investment (ROI) for this project. Assume that
the cost of capital is 7 percent.
b.
How would the rate of return change if the project
delivered $50,000 in additional revenue and gen-
erated cost savings of $25,000 in the first year?
3.
Using a word processing program, write a detailed job
description of a CIO for a medium-sized manufacturing
company. Use a graphics program to make a presentation
on the requirements for the new CIO.
2.
A new IS project has been proposed that will produce not
only cost savings but also an increase in revenue. The initial
costs to establish the system are estimated to be $500,000.
The remaining cash flow data is presented in the following
table.
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5
Increased Revenue
$0
$100
$150
$200
$250
Cost Savings
$0
$ 50
$ 50
$ 50
$ 50
Depreciation
$0
$ 75
$ 75
$ 75
$ 75
Initial Expense
$
500
Note: All amounts are in 000s.
TEAM ACTIVITIES
1.
With your team, interview one or more managers at a local
manufacturing company. Describe the company's supply
chain. How does the company handle customer relation-
ship management?
2.
With your team, research a firm that has achieved a com-
petitive advantage. Write a brief report that describes how
the company was able to achieve its competitive advantage.
WEB EXERCISES
1.
This topic emphasizes the importance of information. You
can get information from the Internet by going to a specific
address, such as
www.ibm.com
,
www.whitehouse.gov
,
or
www.fsu.edu
.
This will give you access to the home page of
the IBM corporation, the White House, or Florida State
University, respectively. Note that “com” is used for
businesses or commercial operations, “gov” is used for gov-
ernmental offices, and “edu” is used for educational insti-
tutions. Another approach is to use a search engine, which
is a Web site that allows you to enter keywords or phrases
to find information. Yahoo!, developed by two Tulane
University students, was one of the first search engines on
the Internet. You can also locate information through lists
or menus. The search engine will return other Web sites
(hits) that correspond to a search request. Using Yahoo! at
www.yahoo.com
,
search for information about a company
or topic discussed in Chapter 1 or 2. You might be asked
to develop a report or send an e-mail message to your
instructor about what you found.
2.
Use the Internet to search for information about a systems
development failure. You can use a search engine, such as
Google, or a database at your college or university. Write a
brief report describing what you found. What were the
mistakes that caused the failure?
